Op springfield



E. H. BARNNY AND JOHN enseres" SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.

Lauer Paten: No. 77,862, and May 12, 1868;

IMPROVEMENT 1N SKATBS.

wie Sdjrbnlt narrar-'tt in ilgesi Yrttcrs tant tntnmltiizg'rzrrtnf'tlje'sinm To ALL 'WHOM 1T MAY C oNcEnN: y i y Beit-known that we, E. BARNEY and JonNBnnnLhoth-'of Springfield, in the'county of Harnp'den, and` State-of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful lniprovement in Skates; 'and "ve do hereby declare tix-fat the following is a full,- clear, and exact'd'esc'ription thereof, reference being had 4to theaccompanying drawings,

making a part ofA this specification, and, to thelett'ers of 'reference 'markedtbereomiin Which-f' Figure l'is a sideelevation ofv a skate, showing thev means by-which it is secured to`th'e `foot-0r boots.,

Figure 2 ish view of .the 4under side of thefoot-prlate,wit11therunner and brackets rmovedfshowing our improved arrangement for operating the clamps. f t i Figure 3 is a. vertical transverse section through-lineM N of the heel-fasteningfxvith view ofthe fastening-r screrv. Y

Figure .4 is a bottom view ofthe heel-fastening, as'it appear-s inserted in the heel' ofthe -boot. Figureiis a. vertical transverse section ofthe run'ner A, through line O4 P of fig. Il.4

Figure 6 is a view of thatporti'on of `the `foot-plate to tvhich the stud'is attached whichsecures theclampscrews. i

Figure] is a'topview of the stud. "Figure 8 is aside view of the samei Figure 9'is a bottom view 'of the same.

F'igure'Ois 'an end View oithe same.' i i Figure 11, Nos." l and 2,v are side views of therheel-buttou, and No. 8.is an 'endvicw .of `tbesame. Figure 12 isn plan ofthe heel-plate, and

Figure .lOis a side view, ofthe heel portion ofthe skate, with bracket removed, showing method vsecuring thc hee1-bi1tton toh`eelplate and runner. 4 V -Our invention relates torthat class'of skates which are n'ade of metal, andknown inpoinmerce as clubskates, and consists in the construction and arrangeroent of said skate withits toe or foot-clamps,- ivhereby'the -saidclamps mayv be operated, iri adjusting the skatefto the boot, one independently of` the other, so that the skatemay be easily-.and readily adjustedh more upon one 4side of the sole of the boot than the other, as may'jb desirable; audit also consists in the construction of' the heel-fastening of a skate, whereby the socket, which secures thehecl-button of the skate tothe boo't, may bc ndjustedas the heel ofv the.boot wears arvay and it also consiste in the construction Aof'thc skate-runner, having a point or projection. uponthe toe of said runner;

and it also' consists in the construction of a skate-runner, havin-g the lower-edge upon each sideehamfered c'iffor bevelledv; and'also irrconstructing portions of" the' heel-button, the hole in heel-plate through which the b utton' is inserted, and the buttdng-hole in the sockct-plate, ail of the sameshape, whereby tlie'button is inserted from .the under side of the `heel-plate, and secured therein, t-hus rendering the construction cheaper and more substantial and durable than by the usual construction thereof. v v

As t'occlamps of metal aregenemlly eonstructed,the clamps being operated together,and by onel andthe saine'screw, the clamps slip through theirsockets whenever 'the skater exerts any great force 'upon the ciam'ps,

se that'ivhen he rnay-be'performing some diicult evolution, the skate slips from one sideto Vthe other oftheboot.

y To' remedy this fault', `sharp spuds, placed uponthe top of thefoot-plate, 'havebeen used; but there are yobjectionstothis mode of preventing Ithe skatertroin' slipping upon the boot, as the spud'often penetrates nearly through thesole of the boot, or far enough to cause the boot to leak in wet weather. 5

y Our inventionpbviates the necessity of any"spud in the foot-plate, lasV the-clamps operateoneiridepend--' ently ofthe other,eacl 1 oncbeing capabic of beingmoved either incr-out, without moving the other, end tliey remain perfectly rigid and firm at any point or position they may beleit. n

In the use of theccmmon'heel-plate,as the heel of the boot wears away, it becomes necessary to move the.- buttn-plato further into the heel; but as the ic'c, snow, and dirt, in walking,.ge t in at the button-hole, and i become hard and packed underneath the platepif it isdesired to 'move tbeplatci farther into the heel, it is y i oftentimes necessary to entirely remove thefplate, clean out the space underneath,- and then replace the plate.

Our improvement inthe heel-fastening entirely removes any liability to the clogging or packing of snow and dirt, which cannot be easily removed bynleans of the kcy,without removing the heel-fasteningvfrorh the heel, as there is 'no.communication between the button-hole or chamber in the heel-socket, andthe spnce in the heel ofthe boot in which the socket is placed; and when the .heel wears away,it is only'necessa'ry to turn. a screw from the inside of the beet, 4when' the socket is drawn up, by the action of the screw, farther vinto t'heheel of the b oot'.' The socket, perfectly filling the space in the heelplaterally, prevents'any snow or even water from entering the boot in. walkin g. A' y That others skilled in lthe t:utinayjbe able to make and use our invention,l we will proceed todescribe its construction and mode 'of operation. v

Intl1e-drasvings, D14 Dl represent the clamp-bars,jwh eh nuovel in the sockets D2 Dz, andhaving at their outer ends the cl'ampsD D, and upon'their inner ends the ears E E, both of which ears have la'threadedperfo- .r ation, in which. operate the lscrews e2 e2, each of which has upon its inner end the collar i, and upon its outer end the prismatic portion e, upon' whichto place"'a'key, hymeansjo which to operate tlie'sai'd. screws,

The part e of 'each screw rests in the socket or| space el, made' in each ear'b the collar z' being of larger diameter than the distance across the space el in the stud a, said stud a consisting of asuitable picce of'y metal, upon which are two projections oriea'rs Z1 b, with a space, between, and having a socket or bearing, c", in each ear, and upon the lower end ofthe stud a aref tw'o projections c c, which fit closely into the holes ff, made i the foot-plate B. i

The stud a being placed or secured in thefoot-plate B, 'and the parts e-e of the screws ete? being placed in the sockets cl el,-'and the 'end s cia3 insertedint'o the threaded holes in the ears E E, and turned through, so that the bars Dl D shall'be'drawri into their sockets D2 D2, the clamps are ready for use. In practice, it will only be necessary to mill or cut out suicient'space to: permit the collars z to be inserted vertically into the said space, instead of cutting out the whole spacelbhasishour'n in the drawings; as, in that case,l.the two ears b b would be connected across the ends of the stud, thus ,giving additionall strength to the ears.

The heel-socket consists of a. suitable piece of metal,"F,` consisting of the rectangularrshnped portion p', and the neck r, the lower Aportion having the cylindrical chamberm, with an .ellipticahshaped entrance or button# hole m, the neck r having athreaded hole'v, rhade therein, in which works the screw G. A space or chamber, 1, is made in the heel of thel boot, in which fits tightly the lower part p of the socket F, as represented in red lines in iig. 1,and a ema-ller chamber, I', is made, into'ivhich fits the neck r, said chamber I having an cntra'nee from the top, sniiicientlylarge to permit the'passage of the screw G. A washer, u, may .be fitted into the inside of the boot, so that, whedthe screw is turned into theneck r from the inside of the boot, the screw-head and washer may not project up into the boot, and a thin insole or ap may b e luid over thc screw in the boot,'it`v desirable.- This arrangement has-a `great adVantageovcr the common plate used, as oftentimes the outward strain of the latter against the lower portion of the heel of the b oot pdlls the-heel entirely off the sole while, in our arrangement, thewhole outward-strainjot' the skate is exerted against -both the inner and'outer sole together. l' V v We make the too of the skate of the usual form given to that. class .of skates known as club-skates, exeept that the point t is formed thereon, which projects forward Abeyond thelines of the runner A sufficientlyA to catch inthe ice whenever the heel is raised, to enable the skater to more easily (iertainly retain his position upon the toe of `the skate,'in performing the more diiiieult evolutions uponthe toes; and this we' con Sider 'to be a valuable feature of our invention, as by the use oi` the said points or lp1o'jeetio`ns,' the'skater is enabled to perform evolutions upon the ice which cannot be performedwithoutthe use of 4skates having said points or projections thereon. i v l' The lower edge or surface f: of `the runner is made upon'the'arc-.ot' a circle, or c'oncxive transversely, as shown in fig. 5, and the sides gg of the runnerA/a're also made concave, so that the edges forined 'by the surfaces which meet at the lower edgevoi' eachside of the runner, would be very sharp, and-cut too deeply into theice. 1.

We therefore chamfer off or bevel the edges,ns shown atan, which causes the runner to glide more smoothly upon the ice, andgives the skater greater control over the skate. -In chainfering off these edges,.sonie'm ay prefer that the point or projection t should A'not' be ehamfered all, while others might`pr`efer'-s'orne' bevel i thereon.- Itis not'essential in this feature of our invention that saidl point-should be ehainfered or bevelled at all, as` it is equally operative without such bevel. Y I Y' Figs. 1025, 11, and 12, show the method of securing the heel-button to 4 the heel-plate, 'inireprescnting an' ellipticahshaned hole in` the heel-nlate C, et' s', size to admit'the insertion of the button if, audits n eckfzf; said neck tting closely into said hole mi, and the said button h2 and neck are inserted frein .the undersi'de vof said heel-plate, and the shoulders at the upper side of the neck rv are thenA headed down from the up`p e r sid'e, and .the whole button is then firrnly securedin said heel-plate, the shoulder si preventing any possibilitypf itsbeing drawn up through said lieel-plate, as is often the case with skates' as new constructed. T hcfform of the shoulder s3, as shown in'No. 1 oflig. 1 1, ts a.l recess, s", made infth'e upper part of tht` runner'A, immediately. under the heelplate, thus rendering the said heel-plate stronger, as to its liability to anyvlongitudinal uovement,l this construction we are enabled to mill or form the.y neck ce' andbutton hz-at 'one and the same'operation', which reduces the cost in the manufacture; and they are put together much quicker andeasier, and are more substan- .tialfwhen 'the said button is made, having the large shoulder .t3 upon the lower end, and introducedinto the hole in the heel-plate from below, than when made with the shoulder above, and introducedfrom the top, and riveted underneath l.

In the use of the clamps abov e'described, there are many advantagesverthc ordinary single-screw clamps,l

lolile skaters preferring tov operate the' screw from the outside ldi'- the foot, and-this arrangementnadlnitsef the i Insee i use ofthe key by the right hand alone in operating the screw upon the outside of the right footand the inside ofthe left one, this class of skates generally I )eing made 'in rights and'lefts, as it is termed. I

We are aware that various devices and arrangements have been'used for securing skates to the boot, as in4 Letters Patent granted to P. J. Clark, bearing date Fehlruary f5, 1861, and numbered 31,348, and to U. Josephs,

' granted'May 3, 1859, and'numbered'2'34'4, and also to O. G. Brady, dated-September 22, 1862, andnumbered 36,503; but our invention di'ersvery materially from said devices, both in construction and their-inode of operation, inasmuch as in vour invention the operation ofthe clamps alone adjusts the skate to the boot without the aidof any other adjusting-screws, and in. other particulars; and we disclaim any and every part of said devices irrespective of our arrangement and construction; but having described our invention,

What we do claim as new, and desire`to secure by Lette-rs Patent, is

and operated by means of the screw G, thus securing the skate to' the inner solo of the boot, all constructed .and operating substantially'as described,`and for the purposes specified.

2. We claims skate, havingVthe'point'or projection tl formed upon theto of the runner, substantiallyas' described, and'for the purposes specifiedr Y i' 4We claima skate, having o.' concave botto`m,"w'ith the chamfered or bevelled sides n 71,*sulglstantally as described and herein set forth. l 4. Weclaimthe' heei-fnstening'to a skate, havingthe neck ai', the button it, the hole mi', inthe heel-plate C, and thethol'e m in the button-socket, ,aliofthe same shape, the hutten V'and stem having upon its lower end the largerfporticnc, substantially, described.

BARNEY, JOHN BERRY.

I .1. The heel-socket F, consisting of. the portion p, having the button-sachet therein, andthevthreaded necl` r, 

